Four years ago I was sucked straight into the world of all things Apple. I rely heavily on my iPhone to get through the day, and if I had to give it up for even a week I would be living with severe withdrawals. What would I reach over to look at first thing in the morning, a newspaper? My iPhone is the home of my music collection so for me, it’s my source of relaxation. My iPhone has fixated itself into my daily lifestyle, like an added appendage (Richardson, 2007) and it wasn’t until I sat down to write this blog post that I actually thought, what would I do without it? My answer: finally get round to buying an ipad.
The social costs of mobile devices are that they act as a necessity in many people’s lives, especially within younger generations. Sherry Turkle, a psychologist and director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self says that “there’s this sense that you can have the illusion of companionship without the demands of friendship.” (Turkle, 2009) She also makes the interesting point that our youth are using technology to cut corners on the demands of friendship and the intimacy that comes with those relationships. The reliance of text messaging and social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram are acting as barriers for face to face contact and come at huge social costs. We are losing touch with how to interact with each other in person.
Our personal identities are heavily influenced by mobile devices due to our reliance on their capabilities. Online communication and collaboration technologies can be facilitated through mobile devices which on one hand is enriching as we are not just being influenced by our physical surrounds. (Gluesing, 2009) However, the impact they have on our personal identities can also have a ‘cyborg’ effect as we are now relying on these mobile devices to be an external brain. Amber Case says that technology is evolving us, “as we become a screen staring, button clicking new version of homo sapiens.” (Case, 2010)
I agree with Amber Case and can too see us as a generation of cyborgs and that as we move forward, mobile devices will continue to embed themselves into our daily rituals – allowing for rapid learning and communication between individuals and community.
Turkle, 2010, ‘Interview with Sherry Turkle,’ Frontline, viewed December 2 2012, <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation/interviews/turkle.html>
Richardson, 2007, ‘Pocket Technospaces: The Bodily Incorporation of Mobile Media,' Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, Routledge
Case, 2010, ‘Amber case: We are all cyborgs now,’ TED, viewed December 2 2012, <http://www.ted.com/talks/amber_case_we_are_all_cyborgs_now.html>.
Gluesing, 2009, 'Identity in a virtual world: The Coevolution of Technology, Work and Lifestyle,’ Mobile Work, Mobile Lives: Cultural Accounts of Lived Experiences, Wiley-Blackwell.
Hi Jess, thanks for a great read. I completely agree with you, mobile devices have become a way of life its hard to imagine being without one. In my blog I explored the affects mobiles have on our lifes and also used Turkle as an example, she explained people would rather text than talk, because they can control how much time it takes . I'd be interested to see where technological advancements will take us in the future and whether we will lose complete ability to interact with one another on an intimate level.
ReplyDeleteHi Kasia
DeleteInteresting comment on technological advances and losing the ability to interact on an intimate level. I think we are well on our way there. I cant remember a time in who knows how long, since I have been with a group of people were almost everyone at some point has their mobile out and is on Facebook etc for some if not all of the time. kids these days (and my nieces and nephews as an example) are all to comfortable to say I love you and through in the xoxo when texting or Facebook but when it comes to face to face they are awkward about it. Maybe its an age things as they go through childhood to teens to adults but I for one think it goes back to the way they communicate wich is predominately through technology.
Hi Kasia, thanks for your post! Yeah the controlling time aspect is definitely a factor with why people would rather text. I myself have definitely texted to save time rather than calling someone. I hope we don't loose the ability to converse on an intimate/face to face level but it does look like it's heading in the direction!
ReplyDeleteI agree with the social implications of mobile technology, I am a mother of two young boys and I sometimes wonder if they will loose the ability to know that they should shake someone's hand when they meet them, or how to make eye contact? Also job interviews came to mind, who knows if one day all interviews will be conducted via skype or some other platform, but I believe there is still a need in todays society to have an understand of how to interact with someone in person :)
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